Carton-closing device



Jan. 22,-1929. 9 1,699,809

' D. W. RIPLEY CARTON CLOSING DEVICE Filed Jun! 27, 1927 Patented Jan. 222, 1929.

stares DAVID W. RILPLEY, 0F FRESNO, CALIFGRNIA, T0 SUN-MAID BAiSIN GBOW EBS OF CALIFORNIA, 0F FRESNO, GALIEORNIA, A CORPORATION OF CALIFORNIA.

CARTON-GLQSING DEVICE.

Application filed June 27, 1927.

My invention relates to a carton closing device, and more specifically to a device which will automatically bend the lid so thatit will lie across the bottom, or across the top of the carton, and will tuck a flap on said lid with;

in the carton. The object I have attained is the construction of an automatic carton closing device which operates effectively, which has but :tew working parts, which is of simple construction, and which does not easily get out oi order.

This and other objects hereinafter set forth are accomplished by means of the device hereinafter described and illustrated in the accompanying drawing, in which Fig. 1 shows a perspective view oi the carton closing device complete. In said drawing the carton is designated l. The bottom of the carton is shown as 6, and the flap on the bottom as T. The arm 5 has a carton holding member attached thereto. 1 have formed a block 8 having a semicircular seat 17 with slideways adjacent to said seat, and having a common center with the seat. A rocker 10 is preferably constructed semicircular so that it fits within the rocker seat. It has guides 19 which operate within the slide way 9 so that the rocking movements are uniform. Rocker 10 has a handle 11 extending outwardly therefrom, by which the rocker is actuated. Opposite handle 11 and on rocker 10 are two upwardly projecting tongues 12 and 13. They can be made integral with the rocker, or attached thereto by welding, by screws, or by other well known means. These tongues are preferably made of rigid, thin metal. It will be noted that by the movement of the handle 11 up and down, the tongues 12 and 13 have a radial vertical movementalso. The carton to be closed is positioned directly over the rocker 10 with the hinge portion of the lid aligned with and adjacent to axial line of rocker 10. In this position the bottom 6 rests on the top of rocker 10, and the flap portion 7 lies against the inner surface of tongues 12 and 13. The natural springy characteristics or the card board of which the carton is made holds it in this position. By a movement of the handle 11 downward, it will be noted the bottom 6 is pushed upwardly so that it is on a rightangle plane with the sides of the carton, and the tongues 12 and 13 function to guide the flap 7 vertically into the carton. Tongues 12 and 13 are then removed by raising the Serial No. 201,946.

handle 11 and the carton can be replaced by another,wl1cn the same procedure takes place. For the purpose oil keeping the flap 7 within the carton and the bottom 6 on a right-angle plane with the sides of the carton when the tongues 12 and13 are being removed from the carton, l have formed a slot 14 in block 8 and have pivoted therein a stop 15 which is held by a spring 16 so that normally it projccts into the rocker seat 17 and under the carton adjacent to the flap. When the bottom of the carton and the flap are being pushed upward into the carton, spring 16 yieldingly permits the stop 15 to be pushed out of the path of the carton and into slot 1d by coming in contact withthe flap 7 and the edge of the bottom 6. When the bottom and flap are in place, however, dog 15 is positioned by spring 16 under the flap 7 so that the flap 7 and bottom 6 are held by stop 15, while the tongues 12 and 13 are being withdrawn from the carton.

It is noted that in the drawing and toregoing description I have described the means for closing the bottom of the carton. For the purpose of closing the top of the carton, the same device is used except that it is reversed so the upper part shown in the drawing becomes the lower part.

One of the discoveries which makes the de vice work perfectly is the fact that the carton is positioned so that the hinged portion or the bottom or the hinged portion of the lid, is aligned with the center line of rocker 10.

It is further noted that the power for moving the levers designated is not necessarily hand power, but the movements can all be accomplished with well known automatically operating machinery.

Having described my invention, I claim:

1. A carton closing device for closing the ends of cartons having a cover hinged at one side to the wall of the carton and having a flap at the other end, consisting of a rocker shaped as the segment of a cylinder, said rocker having tongues projecting tangentially adjacent to the flat portion of the rocker, means for rocking the rocker and means for positioning a carton adjacent to the rocker so that the cover can lie flat on the flat portion of the rocker and so that the flap can be engaged by the tongues by the rocking inovement of therocker.

2. A carton closing device consisting of a rocker, the top of which is an approximate plane, tongues projecting approximately vertically from the rocker at one edge of said plane, the tongues being aligned with each other, and parallel with the axial line of the rocker, means for positioning and holding a carton adjacent to the top of the rocker so that the bottom of the carton can rest on said plane with the hinge line of the bottom aligned with the axial line of the rocker, and so that the flap on the bottom of the carton will rest against the tongues, and means for rocking said rocker so that said tongues will move upward a predetermined distanee and then downward to the starting position.

3. A carton closing device consisting of a rocker, the top of which is an approximate plane, tongues projecting approximately vertically from the rocker on said plane, the tongues being aligned with each other, parcent to the top of the rodker so that the bottom of the carton rests on said plane with the hinge line of the bottom aligned with the axial line of the rocker, and so that the flap on the bottom of the carton will rest against the tongues, means for rocking said rocker so that said tongues will move upward a redetermined distance and then downwar to the starting position, and a stop member adaptedto be normally positioned under the flap of the bottom when the carton is positioned above the rocker, and to be yieldin ly pushed out of the way of this flap as said ffap is being tucked into the carton.

DAVID W. RIPLEY. 

